The new boss ofKCBS--its News Director--doesn't believe in returning e-mails inquiring why certain stories aren't covered. That's his right. But it's also someone else's right to figure out why there's so much confusion inside the newsroom. That's not my opinion, merely some of the veteran rank and file not connected to the main characters --and there's quite a few of them.

*KTVU's inner belly is filled with a lot of jaded, uninspired, angry and nervous staffers. They go to work every day as professionals who do their job in spite of a mean-spirited, mostly "screw you" management hell bent on making life miserable. Worse yet, KTVU vets --both on and off the air--seem to have little sympathy for their colleagues: the camera people, the news editors, the producers, and some reporters who are fighting for their hard-earned benefits.

One particular big time player who has been noticeably silent on all the matters of concern: Frank Somerville.

*The KPIX female anchor that is chummy with the giggly weatherwoman should understand that if you're gonna talk smack against certain former allies than future dealings can be murky at best.

*"La Cage Aux News"--that's what a staffer in the biz e-mailed me about KGO-TV. I'm not sure anyone cares but this person does.

*Ama Daetz: all I care about is on-the-air and you are a 10 there.

*Reggie Aqui: the plastic that covers the couch at grandma's house.

*Drew Tuma: Were you an extra in Anchorman? *Heather Holmes is an interchangeable moving part. She reads the teleprompter well, is blessed with a very easy-on-eyes face and can perform the most basic anchor duties. But she's thoroughly lacking in the newswoman as trade department --in other words, Heather, you're no Julie Haener, Elaine Corral, or Leslie Griffith --to be blunt: you're nothing special.

*Mike Mibach: KTVU's Mr. Softie.

*Keba Arnold: Oh please.

*Sudden cold in the former allies department: Wayne Freedman and Tracey Watkowski.

KTVU - Heather Holmes does a fine job. Nothing off the scale but does more than a great job. Keba does ok. She's at least trying to swim in the big market. Mibach on the other hand thinks his ish doesn't stink. He's waiting for the big networks to come knocking like they have for other people in the market... keep waiting pal. Keep waaaaaaaaaiting.

KRON - (crickets)

KPIX - Juliette and Roberta are BFFs. They both know the business well. Let'em talk. They'll get whats coming to them.

KGO - Dan Ashley is great. Ama is the perfect choice for the prime time team. The rest of the cast/team is vanilla ice cream. Larry Beil #2?!?! Completely laughable. He's not even Top 5 Sports Anchor material. He is terrible... WITH AUTHORITY!!!!

KNTV - Best all around News Station hands down. Mathai and Aguirre are easily the best anchor team. Janelle Wang also does a great job. KNTVs only misstep... Letting go of Christina Loren. I still can't understand it. Kari Hall reminds me of a frumpy cousin who is trying to be cool but is missing the mark. Badly.

Rich, when you write about the labor struggles at KTVU, you never print what they make. It's my understanding that KTVU, which in the past paid more than the other stations, wants to simply pay what KPIX, KGO and KNTV are paying. They want to pay what the market price is for labor. So why don't you print the actual salary numbers for different jobs at KTVU so we can judge for ourselves. If you're skittish about naming names, give pay ranges and average pay figures. Why should one employer pay more than another for the same work?

The market price is whatever the lowest salary that a station wants to pay...usually the AFTRA minimum in union shops. Generally, top rated stations pay the worst because they don't have to pay any more. Talent get paid in ego for working at the #1 station. It many, many cases, the 2nd and 3rd place stations pay the most in order to get talent to want to work at the underdog. Look at what the dog last-place KPIX was paying top talent for years. And in many cases the 2nd and 3rd place stations generate just as much or more sales than the first place station.

Anon at 6:09...KGO was for a time the best compensated back when TV stations actually did local production. NABET was always a stronger union that IBEW. When deregulation hit and stations dumbed dow operations and laid off people, wages stagnated. Other stations caught up to KGO. At KTVU before FOX, a master control operator/TOC/ingest operator would make up to about 1850 a week spending on how many hours they were "on the board" and how many hours were after midnight and 6am. Camtechs made about the same. These are all the people that Rich genetically refers to as "cameramen". Now Fox has cut the wage is 1600 a week, flat rate. Fox offers no pensions to hourly employees like Cox did. Video editors wages have are about the same, but Fox did take away all night differential and short turnaround and such for all union hourly employees. Not sure what the market rate will be since most if not all local commercial stations save for KPIX (for the time being anyway)Will "hub", meaning that if you are a master control operator you are out of work because one hub in Atlanta and it Las Vegas will run multiple stations. But yeah, if you own it you run it the way you want.

We're further south on SLO County, so we lost the terrible broadcasts from Salinas a while back. We still have the KSBY news from SLO, but KCOY, KKFX and KEYT are all sharing their reporters and broadcasting from Santa Barbara. I wouldn't call any of these broadcasts as "major league"...